In Windows 7, (And Vista) Administrator is a confusing term: there's two ways the same term is used.
Windows has a special account with the user name Administrator. This account has User Access Controls turned off; hence, it's used for those "special jobs" where access to the deepest parts of Windows is required. By default, this account does not appear among those available at Log-In.
When one installs Windows, they're given the opportunity to create a User account with Administrator privileges. This is the account most people are familiar with.
Because so many users operate their systems with only one account, and it has Administrator privileges, their system is vulnerable to malicious code (and user error.) Microsoft made this type of account "Protected Administrator" and gave it "some" limitations to make their system a little more secure. Unfortunately, Microsoft chose to give "Protected Administrator" accounts the same name, leading to the confusion. This is extra confusing for those who are used to Windows XP, where an Administrator account is the "Real Deal."
In my messages, I endeavour to call Protected Administrator accounts "Accounts with Administrator Privileges" to avoid introducing further confusion. Sometimes, I forget!
For those cases where a Protected Administrator account does NOT have sufficient privileges, Windows provides a means of accessing the built-in Administrator account temporarily. Right-click an executable file or shortcut and choose Run as Administrator. Windows will ask for confirmation, and if you're using a Limited User account, Windows will demand the password of an Administrator account. This is similar to the Run As. . . found in Windows XP.
Some programs must run with administrator privileges but don't make this clear until it fails or crashes when executed by a Limited user. In these cases, Windows shortcuts provide a handy option. Right-Click the shortcut, select the ShortCut tab, click the Advanced button, and put a check-mark in the Run as Administrator box. With this checked, the shortcut will always ask for administrator approval before elevating privileges.
Cheers, PW.
P.S. The command for making the hidden Administrator account visible. . .
net user administrator /active:yes
This command also creates a new Desktop and and related files for this account. And they're not easy to delete.
net user administrator /active:no
This hides the Administrator account.
In short, to elevate your privileges to Administrator, Right-click the shortcut and pick Run as Administrator.
P.P.S. Privileges can be inherited. If one opens a Command Prompt window as Administrator, all commands they enter will execute as Administrator too.
Pssst! This is why malicious code tries so hard to run with privileges -- all the "children" get launched with the same "magical powers." |
